4110.2: Tuesday, November 14, 2000 - Board 8

Abstract #11926

Promoting women's health through community partnerships

W. Martin Hiller, MS1, Donna Burke, BSN, CCM2, Lee Elmore, RN3, Viki Marsh, MEd, CHES2, and Dena Young, BSN, ND4. (1) Executive Director, The Free Clinic of Greater Cleveland, 12201 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, OH 44106, 216/721-1667, cstaff@netincom.com, (2) Cuyahoga County Board of Health, 1375 Euclid Avenue, Rm 518, Cleveland, OH 44115, (3) Executive Director, North Coast Health Ministry, 15644 Madison #204, Lakewood, OH 44107, (4) Free Clinic of Greater Cleveland

Only 42% of low wage workers in the United States had employer-sponsored health insurance in 1996, compared to 54% a decade earlier, according to the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. In Cuyahoga County, the largest county by population in Ohio, 157,000 (1 in 7) persons are without health insurance. The Free Clinic of Greater Cleveland and the North Coast Health Ministry are two agencies that are serving the needs of the medically underserved in the community. They are seeing approximately 25,000 patients annually. One partnership that has developed to promote women's health services at the above agencies is through the Breast and Cervical Cancer Project of the Cuyahoga County Board of Health. The Breast and Cervical Cancer Project was developed to provide access for women in low income, uninsured and underinsured populations. Integral to the success of this initiative is the commitment and collaboration of agencies in the county. Working together we have provided accessible, cost-effective, quality services free of charge to the medically underserved women in our program. This presentation will discuss the challenges and lessons learned in promoting women's health services through community partnerships.

Learning Objectives: 1.Describe the promotion of preventive women's health issues among women at mid-life through existing free clinics and health ministries. 2.Identify the advantages and challenges to community based partnerships. 3.Identify barriers to serving the target population

Keywords: Community-Based Partnership, Women's Health

Presenting author's disclosure statement:
Organization/institution whose products or services will be discussed: The Free Clinic of Greater Cleveland The North Coast Health Ministry Cuyahoga County Board of Health, Breast and Cervical Cancer Project
I do not have any significant financial interest/arrangement or affiliation with any organization/institution whose products or services are being discussed in this session.

The 128th Annual Meeting of APHA